A small Buckinghamshire distillery that usually makes gin and vodka out of honey has begun making hand sanitiser amid a global shortage — highlighting how businesses both great and small are throwing their weight behind efforts to fight Covid-19.

The British Honey Company said on Tuesday it had been given the green light by UK tax authorities to use its spare capacity for producing hand sanitiser ingredients. The British Honey Company’s distillery in Worminghall, Buckinghamshire, will now start producing hand sanitiser out of 70% alcohol and extracts of British honey and green tea.

Michael Williams, chief executive of the British Honey Company, said the effort “enhances our existing business model at the same time as assisting with the efforts to combat the spread of Covid-19.”

“An alcohol based sanitiser is vodka or gin at 70 % ABV made from denatured alcohol,” Williams said in a statement.

“Following approval of our application to HMRC to produce denatured alcohol, our expert distillery team have been working alongside our in-house microbiologist and an Oxford University chemist to develop and manufacture this new product.”